Hobbies and Pastimes
Astronomy
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Observing the night sky as a leisure pursuit rather than a professional science: watching planets, stars, meteor showers and deep-sky objects by naked eye, binoculars or a home telescope, often through local astronomy clubs and organized star parties.
Facts
Established When (Circa)Watching the sky for practical and religious purposes reaches back to the Babylonians, Chaldeans and ancient Egyptians, but amateur astronomy as a leisure pursuit distinct from professional science took shape circa the mid-nineteenth century among wealthy "Grand Amateur" observers, then reached a much wider public after the Second World War as affordable telescopes and equipment became available to ordinary households. 1 Sources
1. Amateur Astronomy (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundationen.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amateur_astronomyQuote, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amateur_astronomy
Popularizing in the mid-nineteenth century, amateur astronomy gained millions of participants evolving from wealthy Grand Amateurs and the more accessible equipment after World War II.
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